LAN Airlines

Flew 4 times within a space of 6 days with LAN in Argentina and Chile. The first flight was cancelled and we were only informed on arriving at the airport. The check-in staff were very unhelpful and told us to go to the ticket office in the centre of Puntas Arenas (a 20 minute taxi ride away). The staff there weren't much help either and couldn't find space on an alternative flight so we eventually went by bus (14 hours) the next day. We did get our money back though. Flights 2 and 3 were fine. The food was pretty dire - 3 biscuits one of which contained Ham. Puerto Iguazu to Buenos Aires landed at the wrong airport in BA (not the one that was scheduled. Luckily we didn't have a connecting flight. If you did have a connecting flight then you had too get a taxi which you had to pay for. Overall not a good airline but there isn't a huge selection in Argentina and Chile so you would struggle to avoid it.

UIO-GYE-SCL. If I can avoid it I wouldn´t fly this airline again. Check-in in Quito was a nightmare - about 15 pax ahead of me took them 1.5 hrs. My seat was dirty first drinks were offered over 3 hrs after take off in Quito food was okay but no more water or other drinks were offered during the flight.

SYD-AKL-SCL A340 SCL-AEP A320. Check in at SYD airport was easy staff very friendly. Onboard the food is not that great but I didn't mind. SCL-AEP was a short flight at AEP it took only 5 minutes to get the case and get out from the airport!

AEP - MDZ - AEP. Outbound embarkation efficient good leather seats clean plane friendly FAs calorie-laden snack box arrival on time quick baggage handling. Inbound delayed access to gate so queue snaking around concourse eventual embarkation held up pax no sitting down too many mobile phones in use FAs friendly as before same snack box arrival on time slow baggage handling.

Los Angeles to Santiago Chile. We found LAN via Alaska Airlines to Seattle and Los Angeles and LAN direct to Santiagoi for less than $700 per person. No charge for meals pillows blankets all the comforts in economy class and service that we do not see on Canadian airlines.

SYD-AKL-SYD Business class on A340-300. Flights on time. Priority check-in at both ends with fast-track through immigration and security at SYD only. LAN uses the Qantas lounge at both airports. Priority boarding honoured. Seats are very comfortable for sitting with excellent pitch and good width - fully flat for sleeping and extremely comfortable with good padding. IFE was on-demand but selection of latest releases was limited. Onboard catering was nothing to write home about. FAs friendly and efficient. Aircraft and cabin was clean and well- maintained.

NYC-LIM-EZE Business Class. Great staff and very comfortable seats on both legs. On the overnight trip to LIM the seats went completely flat and enabled us to get just under six hours of sleep.

Madrid to SCL0. I do this route on a regular basis and one of the more pleasant long hauls you will find in economy class. This flight benefits from extended darkness which reduces cabin activity from most passengers right until the last hour or so. Cabin crew efficient and attentive and have the extraordinary nature of working in total silence when dealing with requests for drinks. Self service for snacks in economy a real bonus and plenty available. Water and juice rounds plentiful. The best to South America.

MEX-SCL-EZE return. Very good inflight service. Check-in at MEX and EZE was quick and efficient. Both legs relatively empty so had two seats for myself. Pitch decent; seats with PTVs and food was OK. Coffee and water offered continuously. Staff well groomed and attentive. EZE-SCL legs operated with new A319s leather seats and filling snack. Very competitive fare and good service when compared to American carriers serving South America. Terrible website. My credit card was charged twice and had to contact the call center to finalize my booking. Luckily the problem was solved before my trip. The return flight to MEX was delayed for 1.5 hours and had to run to make my connection. Boarding at EZE is a nightmare; airport staff unprofessional and rude.

Premium Business Class NYC to Guayaquil. The flight from New York was fine nice plane on- time departure. Return flight a mess. The flight was cancelled and even 30 minutes after it was supposed to depart LAN had not announced that the flight was cancelled. They delayed check-in until the only other flight that morning (AA ) had left. They refused to put us on the AeroGal flight that left an hour after our original departure but after much to do bought us tickets on TACA (still out of network but I guess less of a competitor). I don't think LAN ever planned on flying this flight and thought they could just combine it with the less full 11pm flight. I will never fly LAN and will avoiding flying them again.